


Day Seventeen: Ladybugs

by sparrowhaven



Series: Final Fantasy 14 Writing Challenge March 2021 [17]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: 31 Days Writing Challenge, Best Friends, Gen, Shenanigans, Twin Azem AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 01:14:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30114903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sparrowhaven/pseuds/sparrowhaven
Summary: People barging into his office was fine. People more specifically barging into his office to ask him favors was also fine.It's when one of his best friends barges into his office lookingseriousabout it that Hythlodaeus starts to worry.
Relationships: Azem & Emet-Selch & Hythlodaeus (Final Fantasy XIV), Azem & Emet-Selch (Final Fantasy XIV), Azem & Hythlodaeus (Final Fantasy XIV)
Series: Final Fantasy 14 Writing Challenge March 2021 [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2190222
Kudos: 5





	Day Seventeen: Ladybugs

**Author's Note:**

> More hijinks with the quartet of Amaurotine troublemakers.

Having people barging into his office was so expected that Hythlodaeus hadn’t needed to keep his door shut in years. Having one of his best friends barge in on him while he was working was _also_ completely within average parameters. He’d even made a habit of keeping snacks in case someone came hungry.

What _wasn’t_ normal was Artemis barging into his office holding a preview of a concept that had been on display on one of the lower floors of the Bureau of the Architect. She shoved it in his face as she leaned across his desk. “I searched everywhere I could for name of whoever originated this and I can’t _find_ it. You’re the Chief so you either already know or you can find out.” There was an urgency to her voice that was very unlike her.

Before Hythlodaeus could respond, Apollo also stumbled into the office. He was short of breath, as if he’d been chasing after his twin. Which he probably _had_ done, all things considered. “Can’t just…run off…without…words…” He said when he could manage to speak.

“I need. To know. The name.” Artemis hadn’t turned from staring down Hythlodaeus. He couldn’t see her eyes, but he didn’t have to. He knew her well enough to know that she hadn’t even blinked. 

Taking this very rare moment of seriousness for what it was, he gently took the preview of the concept from her hand and examined it. Inside was a model of an insect. A beetle, from the look of it–an exoskeleton that had wing casings that split in half to allow the diaphanous limbs to spread for flight; short stubby antenna to sense the world around it; twin pincers next to its mouth; six legs that ended in fine, almost unnoticeable hairs to allow for climbing surfaces. Unlike most beetles that Hythlodaeus had examined, this one’s coloring was primarily red with black spots dotting its shell in a random pattern. When he queried the preview, a name came up immediately: ladybug.

The contributor was marked as Anonymous. His clearance let him find out why.

“Well?” Artemis demanded. 

“Well it’s no wonder you couldn’t discover the name.” He said while handing it back to her. “Whoever it was didn’t want to be known to the public.”

“WHAT?!” 

“Not everyone likes to be in the public eye, sis.” Apollo shook his head. “I know it’s hard to wrap your head around, considering who we are and who we know.” He made a significant look in Hythlodaeus’ direction. “No offense.”

“None taken, unless you wish for me to play the part of Emet-Selch for a moment.”

“If you wouldn’t mind.”

Hythlodaeus cleared his throat. “How _dare_ you, Apollo. I _resemble_ that remark.” 

Apollo responded with a thumbs up. “I don’t know how you do it, but you sound more and more like him every time you try.”

Artemis slammed her hands on the desk. “Can we _focus_ , you two?”

The men both paused, then looked to each other before turning their faces to her. Clearing his throat again, Hythlodaeus spoke first. “Alright, I’ll ask since no one’s said anything about it yet: What’s going on, Artemis? You’re acting…well, more like Hades than usual.” Apollo worried at his lip while nodding in agreement.

Her jaw was tight while her head turned away. It was Apollo’s turn to be Azem, so her white mask showed a little more of her dour expression. “I just…want to know who made the ladybug concept. It seems…” She hesitated. Her mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried and failed to come up with something to answer him with. Finally Artemis settled on, “I want to see what sort of mind could come up with it.”

Hythlodaeus set his face as neutrally as he could and steepled his fingers. “I really shouldn’t ask, but I’m going to anyway. You’re sure you want to find them?”

“Absolutely.” Her earlier hesitation was gone. 

After a dramatic pause (by the end of which he was sure that she was about to lean across the desk again and smack the heel of her palm into his mask), he opened his hands with a somewhat helpless shrug. “Alright then, I’ll see what I can do.”

Her relief was instant. “Thank you, Hythlodaeus.” 

“Well of course! Anyone that interests _you_ this much without even having met them is _bound_ to be an interesting person.”

——

“You know,” Hythlodaeus said to two of his best friends as he watched the scene happening in front of them from a distance. “I had high expectations for their meeting, but I’m somewhat disappointed.”

“It goes to show that you need some more _reasonable_ expectations.” Emet-Selch drawled. He had been on his way to the office of the Chief of the Bureau of the Architect when the twins and Chief himself had passed him by. _Naturally_ the three of them had bodily dragged him along for the journey to find the creator of concepts that Artemis had been keen to meet. When they were within sight of the greenhouse that the Amaroutine worked at, she had broken off from the group to go ahead and meet them with a spoken warning of what was to come should her best friends (and brother) follow. Naturally, the three had moved to be _just_ within sight of her and no further. 

They had been waiting in that spot for _quite_ a while. 

“That’s rich, coming from you. ‘I’m Hades and of _course_ Azem can do the impossible, they’ve done it every day they’ve been in office!’” 

Emet-Selch stared back at Hythlodaeus. His red mask made his menace all the more obvious. “I don’t sound like that.”

“Yes you do and you know it.”

“He’s right you know,” Apollo chimed in. “Every other time we get an assignment, you’re the first one to cheer us on.” He grinned. “In your own way, of course.”

“Well I _never_.” Emet-Selch put a hand to his chest in dramatic shock. “What shocking accusations from two of my best friends. I hardly think I can recover.” His quietly growing smirk gave him away. “Although if we’re about to throw slander around, I have a few things to say about the two of you.”

“I thought you three would be in gossip mode by the time I got back.” Artemis’ voice interrupted the game. All three men turned and she gave them a wave. She had a far more peaceful expression on her face.

Both Hythlodaeus and Emet-Selch looked at each other. Even though their respective masks hid the upper parts of their faces, it was absolutely clear that their eyebrows had been raised up to their hairline. Apollo looked more relieved than shocked. “Looks like it went well,” He said with a smile.

“Yeah…yeah it did.” Her own smile was far softer than anything her best friends had ever seen her exhibit before.

After waiting an appropriate amount of time (about thirty seconds), Hades said, “We should meet this fellow if he’s capable of producing soft feelings in _Artemis_ of all people.”

Hythlodaeus chimed in as if the two had rehearsed, “Absolutely. If he’s to be involved with our Artemis, surely he must know he has _three_ people he needs to impress.”

“D-don’t pull me into this,” Apollo immediately held his hands up and took a step back. “I’m fine with whatever she’s comfortable with.”

“ _Two_ people, then.” 

“Two people with quite exacting standards,” Hades added. He was so full of smug that his smirk had become a full blown grin. “We need a full profile of him immediately.”

“With at least _three_ character witnesses.” Hythlodaeus was also grinning from ear to ear.

The parts of Artemis’ face that could be seen were quickly coloring from the onslaught. “If both of you don’t stop that I’m going to–”

Instead of addressing her quickly growing rage, Emet-Selch turned his attention to Hythlodaeus. “You never did say what his name was before we got here.”

“Oh right! His name is Darsus!”

“Hm, I shall have to look him up later.”

“Guys, stop before–” But Apollo’s warning came too late. Artemis had already conjured up a concept of lightning to chase her two best friends with.

**Author's Note:**

> Darsus is a character that was originally made by [thedovahcat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thedovahcat/pseuds/thedovahcat) that we added to the AU just because. He's a gardener that likes to make concepts about garden-related things like friendly insects.


End file.
